Pressured
by WhenDonkeysPranceLikePonies
Summary: Full summary inside. Coupling: MikanXNatsume, HotaruXRuka ... Rated T just in case.. RxR if you can. *BTW, this fanfic is going to have a lot of Paramore stuff in it.
1. The Firestarter

**SUMMARY:**

Imagine if Mikan and Hotaru met when they were both twelve instead of at three years old, like in the anime/manga. Imagine if Hotaru left to study in Alice Academy three years later, just turning fifteen, and Mikan followed after.

Then…imagine how it'd be like for Mikan to meet Natsume, the one and only popular special star student of the academy who is mostly known for his bad boy acts and rebellious attitude. Imagine how a guy like Natsume would respond to a sweet, innocent and benevolent brunette girl being assigned as his partner.

DISCLAIMER: Obviously, I DON'T OWN GAKUEN ALICE. This is purely fan-made, since I LOVE Gakuen Alice, ever since I started watching and reading the anime and the manga. The manga is obviously better.

* * *

"HOTARU!!!" the hazel-eyed brunette screamed as she swung the classroom door open.

It was lunch break and people were having their desired meals when she suddenly barged in.

Imai-san, the class genius, sat in a corner and readied her Mikan-swatter.

When the brunette spotted her, she started to run towards her in slow motion, when all of a sudden, an irritated look invaded her features and she leaped into the air (anime-style, of course), yelling, "You big idiot! You moron! You stupid-head!", and preparing to attack her best friend.

When she came down though, Hotaru swatted her with the said swatter she was getting ready with.

"Hotaru, you're so mean!!…" Mikan said, but paused as she remembered what she came for. "And by the way, what's with this letter, huh?" she asked, and showed her the robot turtle and letter.

Hotaru said nothing.

"What's this about this new school??…and the goodbye and everything???" she continued to ask.

"Seeing how you managed to ask those questions, I have no doubt that you perfectly understood the letter…" Hotaru finally replied.

"Demo…demo…" Mikan started saying, but broke down in tears as she said her next lines. "I-I thought we're best friends…how could you just…just…just leave like that??"

Before she could say anymore, Hotaru walked over and wiped her tears. "Dummy, it's not like I won't ever see you again…I'll come back in the summer and winter vacations.". As she said this, a car honked outside the school building.

"That's them…", she said quietly, but Mikan heard her.

"What? What are you talking about??...You're leaving now?" she asked.

"Gomen-ne." Hotaru said, and turned away.

Those were the last words she spoke to her before she left.

Mikan stared at the night sky that glittered brightly with its stars while sitting on the front porch of her house. It has nearly been a year since she has last seen Hotaru. She took out the postcard she received early in the morning. It had been the only thing her best friend sent her throughout the past nine months, even if she herself had been writing to her every two days since she left.

She reread the few lines written on the postcard. "This year's summer has been really hot, and I've been feeling quite tired, so I won't be coming back for now. With the completion of my air-conditioner unit, I'm quite comfortable. I've sent the view outside of my window to you on the back of this so you can see it too. Please send watermelons.", it said.

Mikan felt herself tearing up again and sniffled, "Hotaru, you heartless girl!".

Then she hugged her knees as she reminisced when they first met.

**_Flashback_**

"This is our new student, Imai-san.", her class teacher at that time introduced.

A girl with bluish-black hair stepped into the room. She had deep violet eyes and a blank expression.

"Hajimimashite", she simply said, causing her classmates to ogle at her in fascination. She was beautiful and freaky at the same time.

"What's your favorite subject??", one of the students asked.

In response, she said, "Nanotechnology.", this time causing the students to ponder what that meant in awe.

Clearly, she was a genius, and that made Mikan slightly jealous. She was quite keen on avoiding her on her first day, but when classes were dismissed for the day...

"Ne...", someone called from behind her as she was about to leave the school.

She turned and saw Imai-san.

"Do you want to be my friend?", she asked, still showing no emotion on her face.

She lifted up a brochure showing next week's concert for duets, and the prize being a 10,000 yen meal ticket.

"If we act as ourselves, people will definitely praise us for being cute and staying together.", she continued.

For some reason, that won Mikan over, and she decided to take part in the concert mentioned.

For the concert, they wore matching punk outfits (they're twelve here, remember??) and sang Jojo's 'Leave (Get out)'. They even choreographed a dance along with it and won numerous compliments from the crowd, earning the winner's trophy and the meal tickets.

By then, they have become known throughout the small neighborhood for their singing talents and strange yet heartwarming friendship.

They did everything together, and even Hotaru was starting to show a bit of emotion every now and then. Of course, whatever Mikan achieved, Hotaru can easily outdo her with her robotic inventions.

Nevertheless, Mikan learned to love her best friend and already thought of her as her imaginary sister, although whenever she mentioned it to Hotaru, her best friend just shoots her with her Baka gun, saying she would never want to be sisters with an idiot.

Mikan, however, knew that deep down inside, Hotaru was feeling the same way.

**_Flashback ends_**

Mikan sighed. She wondered how Hotaru will be spending her sweet sixteen. Then she stood up, with an idea. "I can't possibly miss Hotaru's sweet sixteenth birthday!!", she said to herself. She has saved up enough money to go on a trip to Tokyo, especially after all the money she earned from her secret part-time job. "Yosh!", she said, slapping herself, filled with determination.

"Gakuen Alice??", Mikan's new friend said, widening his eyes. He was a tall 17-year-old who had coppery-blond hair and dazzling emerald green eyes. His skin was tanned from all the times he spent under the sun.

He met Mikan when he first moved into the neighborhood. Fortunately for him, she wasn't one of those fangirls who kept chasing him around when he first registered at his new school.  
When he first met her, he heard her singing in the music room alone when she was asked to clean the room for her cleaning duty. He remembered hearing her sing Avril Lavigne's 'My Happy Ending'.  
It was because of that he asked her to join his about-to-be-band, since he couldn't really find anyone who could be the lead vocalist...that was until he met her.  
She joined with reluctance, saying she wasn't that good, but after their first performance at their school's winter dance, they received a shower of appraisal, reminding Mikan of Hotaru once again.

"Are you sure that school would allow us to perform a concert there??", he asked his friend.

"Why not? We're good aren't we?? We even recorded our own music videos..", the hazel-eyed girl said.

"Duh Haven't you heard of the rumors about it??", he asked.

Mikan sighed and said, "Spare me the details. I really really REALLY want to meet Hotaru again...you wouldn't stop me from seeing her, now would you, Pierre??".

Pierre glanced at her and said, "Whatever...".

Pierre didn't want to see Mikan sad again and from what she said, Hotaru seems to be a very special friend to her.

* * *

Later that night, Mikan went to her grandfather's room and left him a letter, saying she decided to go after Hotaru.

She met up with her bandmates at the train station and together, they left for Tokyo. 


	2. Arriving at Alice Academy

Tobita Yuu was the class representative of his class, and was currently discussing the coming talent show with Imai-san. Their class was in charge, and Narumi-sensei, their class teacher, assigned them to hire a band for the opening and closing of the show.

Hotaru wasn't really listening to him since she was looking through the internet on her mini-laptop. On its screen displayed the website of some sort of band. Yuu thought she was a fan of the band, but in truth, Hotaru was just staring at the brunette lead singer of the band.

"Hey, did you hear??Someone's going to attempt to escape this school!", Yuu overheard someone say.

He immediately panicked in response, and said to Hotaru, "I have to tell Narumi-sensei!".

He then dashed off to find the class teacher.

* * *

"Narumi-sensei!", someone called. 

A blonde teacher turned around, revealing mesmerizing violet-blue eyes, and smiled at the student running towards him.

"What is it, Tobita-san??", he inquired the honey-haired boy as he halts to a stop in front of him.

"Umm…I've heard rumors that someone is going to try escape the school..", he said.

Even if he said the word "someone", Narumi immediately caught his drift to who the culprit is most likely to be.

"Thank you, Tobita-san, I'll be patrolling the borders of the academy to stop him from leaving..", the teacher said calmly, and walked off in the direction of the school's main gates.

To himself, he said, in a worried yet determined tone, "I can't let Persona get him this time..".

* * *

Mikan and her friends crowded around the postcard in her hand to take a look at it. 

The blonde drummer in the band, Nigel, instantly whined, "So you make us come here to Tokyo to perform for a school that you don't even know the exact location of??".

He had a pair of drumsticks in one hand, while a huge cheeseburger in the other.

Mikan instantly reddened in humiliation. "Well...I...we're bound to find it somehow..", she tried to reassure the rest of the team.

The red-headed bassist in the group, Gary, stared at Mikan for a while. He was pale and skinny, and had the coolest demeanor of the whole group. It's only his intelligence and his smart remarks that annoyed the rest of the band. "Mikan...", he said softly.

Mikan gulped, and immediately broke out a sweat as his bright blue eyes bore into her. "Yes??", she asked.

"Does the school even know we're performing there??", he asked.

Mikan sweatdropped, and tried to weasel her way out of the situation by saying, "Well..umm, we're quite famous, aren't we?? They're bound to let us in...right?".

Her bandmates sighed in response, as if they had already expected her to say that.

Pierre then said, "Well, in that case, follow me you guys...I know where it is...".

Mikan was mystified by his sudden knowledge of the school's location, but was even more intrigued that no one else seemed to be startled by his statement.

'What is going on??', she wondered.

* * *

Mikan stared at the colossal gates of the acadamy in awe. 

Behind her, the other bandmates were having a quiet conversation amongst themselves, as if hiding something from her.

"So this is it...", Nigel said, sounding rather bored, but for once, his eyes held a solemn serious look.

"There's no point running away now...", Pierre said quietly. He too, was looking more serious than usual.

Only Gary seemed to act like himself, since he always had that steely gaze anyway.

"Hi, mister...do you mind taking us inside to see the school??", they suddenly heard Mikan say.

She was talking to a blonde guy--or lady with dazzling blue eyes, who was leaning against the wall of the academy.

The man noticed their presence and immediately brightened.

He started walking over to them, saying, "Hello, Pierre Gallagher, Nigel Jones, and Gary Mason...I am pleased to _finally_ meet you..".

The guys bristled at his direct approach, and was freaked out that he managed to _still_ recognize them after a couple of years.

Confused, Mikan walked over to them as well, and asked, "What's going on??".

The man turned to her and frowned sadly. 'This one'll have to go back home..", he thought to himself.

Using his pheromone alice, he told her, "Go home, little girl...".

Mikan stared at him, and after a few seconds, she said, "Are you a woman?? Is that why you're angry with me??".

Narumi fell down anime style, and forced himself to laugh at her remark.

"No, I'm not a woman...", he was saying to her, while on the inside, he was wondering how she managed to block his alice from affecting her.

"She'll have to attend the academy too.", he noted to himself.

And with that, an explosion occurred on the other side of the wall, and a boy with a cat's mask emerged from the mist of rubble and ashes.


	3. Let the Flames Begin

As Mikan and her group watched, riveted by the sight, a bean in the palm of Narumi's hand suddenly morphed into the form of a whip, and he immediately attacked the boy, further appalling Mikan and her band mates.

The whip slapped away the cat mask from his face, and he fell with a thud on the ground. Apparently, the whip delivered quite a nasty blow, causing him to fall unconscious.

Perturbed, Mikan and her friends rushed over to him to see if he was all right.

His flawless skin and handsome face immediately caught Mikan's attention, leading her to blush at some point.

To her amazement, Nigel put his hands over the boy's chest, which instantly, glowed a mysterious white light.

"W-What are you doing??", Mikan asked, her face pale with alarm.

Nigel didn't answer her question, but said, "Don't worry, he's going to be alright..".

The other band mates nodded in acknowledgement, and for the first time, Mikan noticed that there was something they weren't telling her.

"What's going on here you guys??", she asked, suddenly angry, and worried.

Pierre looked at Mikan, and was about to say something, when Narumi-sensei interrupted him.

"Mikan-chan, how would you like to attend this Academy??", he asked.

For a second, Mikan forgot about the problem at hand and said, "Does that mean I get to see Hotaru??".

"All the time you want.", replied the teacher.

Mikan shouted with glee, as the men watched her with silence.

"In that case, let's get this guy inside before anyone comes along and sees this…", Gary spoke with authority, and Narumi-sensei proceeded to carry the knocked-out teenager into the school.

* * *

Unbeknownst to the people around him, the boy Narumi-sensei carried over his shoulder was actually half-awake.

He heard crickets chirping from the school grounds together with some guys following from behind the platinum-blonde teacher, chuckling and talking to one another.

"Oh great. I'm caught..", he thought to himself grimly in the back of his mind.

His mood was then completely lightened by the sound of some girl giggling...

He couldn't hear what she was giggling about, but the sound of her hushed happiness had a soothing effect over him since it somehow lulled him back to sleep in the process.

His only final thought was: _Who is she?_

* * *

"Hotaru!! We shall meet again soon!!", Mikan kept muttering to herself, sitting on one of the red couches in the waiting room they were lead into by the teacher.

The boy was lying down on another couch, fast-asleep, so she didn't have anything to worry about.

Narumi-sensei and the others have left her alone with him, saying they had some things to discuss about with the paperwork, and that they needed someone to watch over the guy in case he does something...rash.

Why they decided to appoint Mikan as the chaperone, she had no idea, but the fact she got to see Hotaru again made her so happy, she just wasn't in the mood to start complaining.

She stared at the pictures taken of her with Hotaru in her photo album, and was reminiscing through the memories they had together when, all of a sudden, somebody pulled her hair from behind. (: She does not have pigtail here, by the way. In this scene, she has a ponytail.:)

"Who are you?", growled her captor.

Mikan blinked and saw that it was the boy who they carried to the school. She didn't answer.

"I asked, 'Who are you?'!! Are you too dumb to answer??", he growled once more.

But Mikan wasn't listening. Not really anyway, since she was more aware of the awkward position they were in.

Finally finding her voice, she quickly protested by saying, "Get off me, you stupid perverted pig!!", as she tried to squirm away from his surprisingly strong grip.

Natsume reddened at the accusation in anger and said, "Who are you calling pervert, weirdo? As if anyone would attempt to molest an ugly girl like you!".

Overall, Mikan was a sweet, nice and caring girl(though quite daft), but insult her too much, and she'll become your worst enemy.

"HOW DARE YOU CALL ME UGLY, YOU POMPOUS JERK!", she yelled back at him.

Natsume was taken aback by her sudden outburst that he accidentally lost hold of her, and they both ended up falling off the couch and onto the ground.

It was the first time Natsume ever got contradicted by a girl, and insulted at the same time, too, so all he had to say was:

"Whatever, polka-dots."

As predicted, another volcanic eruption is on its way, or in other words, _let the flames begin_.

* * *

I was honestly gonna write more, but I gotta go study..

RxR if you can...

(BTW, in case you're wondering why this story was named "Pressured" in the first place, it's because this story is going to have Paramore stuff in this..)


	4. The Thing About Alices

"Mikan…", Pierre tried to console his friend, "..It can't be that bad..", but moved out of the way as Mikan began pulverizing the chair he just happened to be sitting in.

(Note: Unlike the anime, Mikan does not cry about Natsume seeing her underwear, but instead, goes on a ballistic rampage that only Hotaru can subdue.)

"Not that bad?! The stinking pervert practically tried to strangle me and he saw my underwear as a result!! What's more?? He got away with it! With that blonde friend of his—whoever that may be—but if I ever see that repulsive face of his again, I'm going to…I'm going to…aaarrrggghhh!!", Mikan bickered as she stormed the place, obliterating yet another furniture.

"Mikan, calm down.", Gary said as calmly and steely as his reputation allows him to be, but was instantly ignored by the brunette.

Nigel shook his head at Gary's failure at trying to calm Mikan down in disapproval. "You need to get a girlfriend, mate.", he said, as he expertly ducked from some flying object that hit the wall.

"Speak for yourself, Nigel. Your last girlfriend practically dumped you because of that moldy stuffed toy kitten of yours.", Gary spoke back with an indifferent tone.

"Patricia's not moldy!!", Nigel quickly retorted, and started to cuddle his worn-out-looking stuffed toy cat, saying to it, "Don't worry, Patty, Gary knows nothing…".

Pierre rolled his eyes at them, and said, as if to himself, "I wonder what Hotaru would say if she saw Mikan having a tantrum like this.."

Mikan instantly settled down as she thought of what Hotaru might say if she did see her acting like she just did.

"I can't believe an annoying noisy brat like you would come to see me. Now, I'm going to have to pay the school for the stuff that you destroyed…I wish you never came at all.."

Hotaru would never actually say those words exactly, but Mikan was pretty open-minded to believe that she could be saying that, and that would be far worse than anything Natsume might do.

Glad to see that Mikan has finally quieted down, Narumi-sensei, who has been hiding underneath the table the entire time, came out of his hiding place and showed Mikan a girl's school uniform which seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

"An angry face doesn't suit you, Mikan, but this might!", he said, choosing his words carefully.

Mikan looked at him apologetically, and modestly accepted the uniform.

"Sorry, Narumi-sensei…I-I'm going to pay for the things I broke…", she said shyly.

"Don't worry about it, Mikan. Things here usually get broken anyway…", Narumi said, recalling some mishaps caused at his own classroom.

Mikan beamed at being forgiven and rushed to the changing room to try out her new school uniform, as Narumi smiled at her eagerness.

"She really is like _her_..", he thought to himself.

* * *

"Oh! You're such a cutie!", Narumi-sensei complimented Mikan's schoolgirl look. "It looks really good on you! You look so cute in it!!"

"Really?", Mikan asked, glowing with pride.

"Of course you are!!", the teacher confirmed.

"I can't believe she's falling for this nonsense he's spouting out...", Nigel snorted as Mikan and Narumi-sensei started having this father and daughter kind of lifting and swirling thing you often see in sappy family movies.

Finally, the man put her down on the couch and said, "Well then, Mikan-chan, about your entrance into Alice Academy...".

At this, everyone looked up to hear what he has to say.

"Everything has been decided, and you're in!", he finished.

"Hell yeah!", Mikan cheered, punching a fist into the air, and starting dancing around the room in glory, until the teacher suddenly said, "But only temporarily.".

Mikan stopped in mid-step and looked at the teacher in confusion.

"To officially enter, during your week here as a temporary student, you'll need to pass a certain test.", he said calmly.

"Test??", Mikan mumbled in a defeated tone. Mikan never was good at tests, not even pop quizzes. It was usually because of the help of her friends that she managed to pull through in her yearly exams.

Narumi must have heard her disappointment in her voice because he then explained to her that the test was in fact, easy.

"Easy? How could a test be _easy_?", Mikan asked, still feeling dejected.

Narumi-sensei smiled to encourage her and said, "Since you'll be entering our academy's high school branch, all you have to do is cooperate with, get along with, and be accepted by your classmates in class B. The academy will just look over that process to determine your level of Alice.".

"Alice? What's that?", she asked.

"Alice...well, how do I explain this?...Well, people with an 'Alice'—", Narumi-sensei was about to explain but Pierre beat him to it.

"—means that they're endowed with a natural gift. This Academy exists to accommodate the individuals who have their own unique natural gift and help them control their alices..", he said, as if he has heard the explanation a thousand times.

"Pierre, how did you—??", Mikan began to ask, but stopped as she remembered one time when Pierre had managed to dodge his fangirls in the school backyard by somehow appearing on top of the school building...

Mikan once thought that she was seeing things, but now she realizes that it was, in fact, real.

"You have an alice!!", Mikan blurted out, and then looked at the rest of her bandmates. They were all looking the other way, as if scared of having eye-contact with her. "You all have alices...", she muttered, and sank back down into the couch as no one made an attempt to prove otherwise.

Pierre, Nigel, and Gary felt as if they have let her down somehow by the awkward silence that followed, but instead of Mikan accusing them of keeping secrets from her, she went, "WOW!! It's like X-men or something!! Come to think about it, Hotaru-chan probably has an alice of her own too!! I knew she was special the moment I met her!! That's my Hotaru!!".

Baffled by her sincerity, Pierre asked, "So, you're not mad that we didn't tell you about it in the first place??".

Mikan looked at him as if he was making a joke, and said, "Of course not. Why would I be?".

Pierre just smiled and said, "Nothing.". He should've known that Mikan would always be a loyal friend, no matter what the circumstances may be.

The other guys smiled as well, glad that they had Mikan as their friend.

Behind them, a door swung open, and in stepped two people. "Oh, here they are.", Narumi-sensei proudly.

The rest of the group turned to look at who they were and Mikan quickly recognized the raven-haired girl standing beside another student with honey-coloured hair.

"Hotaru!!"

* * *

Sorry if it takes me so long to upload another chapter. I usually get lazy, and I'm not sure when I can upload the next chapter up, especially now that my HKCEEs are here...Still, I hope you enjoy reading what I've written so far. RxR if you can!

Ciao!


	5. Explain To Me This Conspiracy

Hi guys, just dropping by to give you this chapter and add that I might be writing one-shots as I write this story...like songfics, and stuff like that, I guess...

* * *

"Get away from me, you snivelling little girl...", Hotaru said, annoyed, continuing to back away from her best friend.

"Hotaru...!!", Mikan gazed at her longingly, inching closer by the second despite what Hotaru just said.

The rest of the group simply stared at them as the two girls were at it _again_.

"When can they settle down so we check the school out?? They've been running around for the past twenty minutes! And that only includes the time from when we got off the school bus till now!", Nigel said, irritated.

"Maybe they'll stop when _you_ stop your whining..", Gary said, with a hint of mockery in his voice.

"Why you--!?", Nigel barked, as he and Gary started another bickering session.

Narumi-sensei jokingly commented to Pierre that it was a miracle how they were all friends, but Pierre didn't find it amusing.

In fact, it almost seemed as if he _accepted_ it wholeheartedly.

It was no use, Hotaru thought. Even her baka gun wasn't strong enough to hold someone like Mikan at bay for too long.

Besides, how Mikan managed to get enrolled in Alice Academy, much less successfully trespass the school's very grounds, was a wonder to Hotaru, and she had to hand it to Mikan for actually having the guts to do so, even though she had a sinking feeling of suspicion that Mikan didn't know exactly what she got herself into...

And for that, Hotaru had to protect her best friend way more than she had to before...in her own 'Hotaru' way, of course.

"Seeing as how you came all the way here to Tokyo just to find me, and managed to succeed in getting into this academy, I guess you deserve some credit for what you've been through...", Hotaru paused, then said, "Come here, idiot.".

Mikan grinned, and ran to hug her best friend.

'Finally, Hotaru and I are reunited!', Mikan thought happily. 'Nothing would be able to destroy this moment!'

Hyuuga Natsume was at the library, busy looking through a window at the group with the girl he met this morning walking to the school.

He could only barely hear the cries of his fangirls from outside as they shouted out for him, truly thankful that those fangirls never go near libraries during free period.

But he had to get out. He needed to see that girl again. He didn't plan on what he would say to her, as his dialogue usually comes naturally anyway, and that if other girls easily go crazy over anything he does, then surely this girl would be bound to go crazy over him as well, right?

Natsume didn't know why he had the sudden urge of getting the girl to notice him, but he decided to let it go, thinking that he was probably just going through another phase. Like the one he had with Luna.

That one ended up pretty badly, since after Natsume declared that he had no more feelings for Luna, she went on a possessive rampage, and became extremely obsessed with him after the breakup. It was scary even for Natsume himself, but he didn't care what she did since she wouldn't dare do anything to upset him.

Lately though, Luna doesn't seem to appear so often anymore, as she vainly assumed that no other girl in Alice Academy could ever compete against her.

Not until Mikan, of course.

As Natsume continued to stare at the brunette a little longer, and quickly made up his mind.

* * *

The doors to the library opened, and as each fangirl turned to look, there stood Natsume, looking more handsome and more appealing than he usually did.

"Get out of my way.", he said, in his usual rebebllious attitude.

The fangirls stared at him with wide eyes and went--

"Kyaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!"

Natsume grunted, and escaped while they were busy giggling and blushing.

"Girls...", he muttered, as he went off in search of the girl with a peculiar taste in undergarments.

* * *

"Boys...", Mikan muttered, as Pierre, Nigel, and Gary gawked at the number of girls walking around the academy.

"Ne, why isn't everyone in their classrooms? Isn't it a school day today??", Mikan asked, awed at the sight of students using their alices freely.

"Oh, that's because it's free period now...the next lesson starts in about twenty minutes, so if you want, we can look around first...", Iinchou said.

"Yay!", Mikan yelled in delight. She was definitely excited to learn more about her new school.

"You shout just like a kid...are you sure you're part of the high school division??", a familiar voice drawled out from behind her.

Mikan turned around and saw the guy she just met.

"You!!", she shrieked in shock and anger, shaking her finger at the culprit. "That stinking pervert from before!!"

Natsume had the urge to laugh at her straightforward personality, but smirked instead. "As if any pervert would take interest in girls who wear polka-dotted panties..", he retorted.

"You--!?", Mikan wanted to slap him across the face, but was quickly held back by her friends.

"Mikan..", Iinchou whispered in her ear, "I don't think you should mess with him...".

"Why not??", Mikan asked, not bothering to whisper, "He's such a jerk!!".

"It's because, you stupid girl, he's the last person you'll want to mess with..", said someone who appeared from nowhere.

"It's Luna!", the crowd around them whispered, as they backed away.

"No...he'd be the first!", Mikan replied, thought she didn't really think of who she was talking to exactly at the time. "And, who are you exactly?? His girlfriend??".

Her question seemed to have struck a nerve in the girl since her expression suddenly became very weird.

At first, she had a smile on her face, but afterwards, it morphed into a psychotic grin, scaring everyone out of their wits. Finally, it reverted back into a smile, which looked more frightening than the first time it appeared.

"Hahaha...You're funny..but you're just not worth it..", she said, giggling to herself.

"Get lost, Luna.", Natsume said, irritated. He didn't like being interrupted while he was in the middle of a conversation. Especially if that conversation involves a certain brunette.

Everyone gasped at his bravery, hoping that his words wouldn't provoke the girl into doing something entirely dangerous.

Instead, the girl just smiled, and walked away.

'What the--What the heck is with this school?!', Mikan screamed in her head.

* * *

Hope you like it!! Don't forget to RxR!


	6. Something to Sing About

I read one of your reviews about Luna being Natsume's first girlfriend, and true, it's sad. But note that he's around 17-18 here, and when he and Luna were together, he was only 11 years old at the time and they broke up when he turned thirteen. You'll find out more when I post up later chapters.

* * *

"Mikan Sakura will be joining our class from today onwards...I hope you will be nice to her--AHHHH!!", the substitute teacher was introducing Mikan, when one of the students hurled a snow ball at him.

"Sensei!", Mikan cried out, worried for the teacher, while wondering how on earth a snow ball could be produced when it wasn't even snowing outside.

It then occurred to her that she was now studying in a school filled with gifted people who could do almost _anything_.

"Mikan, you can sit in the empty seat at the back...This will be another free period for today!", the teacher sobbed, before running out of the room.

The classroom erupted in cheers, while Mikan was too busy finding her seat, as well as trying not to get too much attention since that usually makes her feel uneasy.

She was stopped by Hotaru though, as her best friend waved her over. Mikan took it as a sign that she wanted to sit with her.

But that wasn't the case, as what she said was completely unexpected.

"I don't know what kind of alice you have that allows you to be here, but I have something to tell you...When we're in the classroom, everything between us will be considered as though we were complete strangers, okay? I'm aiming for the Honor Student Award this year, and I don't really want to butt into any trouble when I'm here, so...do you understand me?", she said, in that same toneless voice of hers.

"What? H-Hotaru??", Mikan said uncertainly, confused at her best friend's behavior.

"I know there's a lot going on right now, but do your best with your own strengths..", she said, then turned back to the book she was reading.

'W-What the heck was that??', Mikan wondered in shock, but thought better than to ask more about it. She had enough baka hits for one day.

When she got to the seat she was assigned to, she instantly recognized the raven-haired guy before her, leaning back against the chair with a book covering his face.

"Not you again!", she sighed, with a look of digust on her face. She sure didn't want to sit next to the guy who was currently entitled to having insulted her the most in one day. Besides Hotaru, of course.

The guy turned to face her, causing the book to fall off, and smirked at the sight of Mikan.

'Perfect', he thought, 'That teacher definitely does what he's bribed to do..'.

"W-What are you smirking at?", Mikan asked, trying her best to stop herself from blushing.

"Why, if it isn't the lovely Miss Polka Dots..", he said in a sarcastic tone, though inside he was really thinking of how _cute_ Mikan looked when she blushed, even more so when she tried not to.

If this was a phase, it was definitely different from the one he had with Luna. For one thing, the only thing that attracted him to Luna in the first place was her tendency to giggle...which reminded him a lot of his sister. Only now he realized, her giggling was nothing like the sweet-sounding innocent laughter her little sister has.

Luna's was more of the typical vain kind of giggling that most girls have when they're flirting too hard.

Mikan's chuckles, on the other hand, was a different story. Hers didn't resemble Aoi's way of giggling, nor did it remind him of other girls. There was something more to it.

Something he wanted to be a part of.

"Miss Polka Dots?! Why you--you--ummm...", Mikan tried to think of something mean to say to him, but was at a loss for words.

"What? Come on, little girl, hit me with your best shot!", Natsume teased, giving her a daring smile.

Mikan gave him a mean look, but didn't say anything.

"What's the matter? Cat got your tongue?", Natsume asked, wondering what made her suddenly go silent.

Instead of answering him back, she sat down in her seat and ignored him.

Natsume may not know it, but Mikan had more important things to worry about...for example, a certain test she needed to pass in order to become an official student at Alice Academy. If she can easily make enemies on her first day of school, then there's probably no doubt she'll have to bid her beloved Hotaru goodbye.

Even Pierre, Nigel, and Gary seemed to fit in quite well, since their good looks and charms seemed to attract a whole bunch of girls when they got to their class... at least, according to Hotaru's new walkie-crawlie bug invention.

Perhaps the day would be better if Narumi had assigned them to the same class instead of putting the boys in class A, while she was put in class B.

Mikan looked in the direction where Hotaru sat, and thought, 'At least I'm in the same class as Hotaru..'.

She smiled at the thought, not knowing that Natsume had been staring at her the whole time.

Before Mikan knew it, her hair was on fire.

Only one person could be behind it.

"Natsume you scumbag!!", Mikan cried out in frustration as she tried to put out the flames.

"That's more like it..", Natsume muttered, but Mikan was too busy tending to her hair to hear what he just said.

When she finally managed to put out the fire, she turned to face Natsume to find him smirking, and completely lost it.

"What the bloody hell is wrong with you, you pyromaniac?!", Mikan yelled at him, loud enough to catch everyone's attention.

Most particularly, a certain girl with dark green hair.

Natsume simply grunted in response.

Mikan cried out in exasperation, and said, "You think you're so great, acting all high and mighty...but you are so NOT--", but was quickly interrupted.

And it wasn't Natsume.

"Actually, you little skank, he IS. If only you looked at him closer, you'd find he's absolutely flawless in every aspect!", the green-haired girl said, gazing at Natsume in awe.

"Who asked for your opinion, Seaweed-head?", Mikan replied bluntly.

"What?!", the girl cried out, infuriated.

"And besides,", Mikan continued, "If I got any closer, I'd most probably get engulfed by the flames of his--oh, I don't know..Integrity?? Oops, I meant STUPIDITY!!".

Natsume was a little taken aback, but was certainly entertained by her sarcasm. As far as he knew, only Imai-san and him ever used it in class.

But 'Seaweed-head' apparently didn't feel the same way, since as quick as lightning, she slapped Mikan across the face, shocking everyone.

Natsume stood up to protest, but his action was misinterpreted by the girl since she took it as a sign to say, "How dare you insult Natsume-kun in front of me, Sumire Shouda, the president of the Natsume Hyuuga & Ruka Nogi Fan Club?!".

Other members of the said club stood up to gang up against her. Then they all started revealing their alices one by one as a threat of using them on her.

"Besides, whatever alice you got that helped you get into this academy probably isn't that good anyway.", Sumire went on, her claws growing out of her finger tips menacingly.

What she said suddenly reminded Natsume of the time when he had Mikan pinned to the sofa. He could've sworn he used his alice then and there. That is, before she revealed her astounding personality. So instead of telling Sumire to back off first, he asked the brunette the question everyone else was wondering. "What is your alice anyway?", he asked, coolly.

Mikan had a blank expression on her face as she pondered carefully what her alice was. 'Come to think of it, Narumi-sensei never told me what my alice was...He just said that I was gifted too...but I don't feel any different..It doesn't feel like I even have an alice...Was Narumi-sensei mistaken??', she thought, but unbeknownst to her, there was a mind-reader in the group listening to everything she was thinking about...and saying it aloud.

"Come to think of it, Narumi-sensei never told me what my alice was...He just said that I was gifted too...but I don't feel any different..It doesn't feel like I even have an alice...Was Narumi-sensei mistaken??", he said nonchalantly, shocking everyone.

"I can't believe it!", Sumire said, "They let you in when they don't even know what your alice is??".

Everyone else started muttering about it as well.

Mikan didn't know what to say, so she looked at Hotaru for support, but she didn't appear to be listening.

Sumire looked at Natsume for any reaction, but he didn't seem too surprised. In fact, he seemed more amused.

It only angered her more.

"You probably don't even have an alice, you low-life!", she spat.

Luckily for Mikan, she can still manage to get fired up. With or without Natsume's help.

"Low-life? Just because you have alices doesn't mean you're all that great!!", she said back.

"Actually, we ARE. In case you didn't know, we students with alices are the special elites that are under the care and protection of the government itself!", Sumire replied.

"Since you seem to know nothing at all, I'll explain it to you. People with alices have made quite a few achievements in many fields, including politics, the arts and the academics. We're the main reason why society is made as it is today. People with no alices such as yourself are only raised to be superior human cogwheels for us to use. Our existence is way more important than those of ordinary people. In other words, we are the chosen humans.", she continued.

"W-What the heck are you talking about? You've got to be kidding me!!", Mikan said, although was actually somewhat convinced.

"The one who's kidding around here is you!", Sumire retorted. Then turning to look in the direction of Hotaru, she said out loudly, "Imai-san must have experienced quite a bit of hardhips herself huh? Being forced to mingle with average humans at her previous school...".

That certainly stopped Mikan in her tracks.

'Hotaru...you wouldn't think like that...you wouldn't think of the people in our town and me like that...right?', Mikan tried to convince herself, but as Hotaru didn't turn back to face her, she became doubtful.

"If you can't even show us any proof..", Sumire apparently wasn't finished, "it's only natural to accept that you don't have an alice. You obviously don't belong here, so you might well leave...freak.".

Mikan didn't listen to a word she said, as she was too busy staring at Hotaru, only hoping that she'd say something to contradict what Shouda-san was saying.

But she didn't.

Even if Mikan didn't hear what Sumire exactly said just seconds ago, she did what she was told.

She ran.

"Mikan!", Iinchou called after her, but she didn't turn back.

"Finally!", Sumire said, proud of herself. "Don't you feel just happy to see her gone, Natsume--??", she turned to the spot where Natsume was, but has found that he too was gone.

'Baka Mikan.', Hotaru thought, worried deep down inside.

* * *

Pierre was finding it unbearable staying in the classroom as all the girls seemed to jump all over him when he first entered. So he decided to break out of the classroom by using his alice : Teleportation.

Once he zapped out of the classroom, he instantly bumbed into his best friend.

Mikan.

"Whoa, how'd you get out of class?", Pierre asked her curiously.

"Huh?..Uhh..I guess I was kicked out..hehe..", Mikan tried to joke around, but the look in her eyes made Pierre know that Mikan isn't acting like her usual self.

"Did something happen?", Pierre asked, concerned.

Mikan didn't say anything.

"Mikan? Are you ok?", Pierre went on.

Finally, Mikan replied, "I want to go home now.".

* * *

"You know, we can't just leave...", Pierre tried to reason with her.

They were lying on the rooftop of the school building, staring at the sky, as they continued their conversation.

"You don't have to leave if you don't want to. But I do. I don't deserve to stay in this academy.", Mikan tried to explain.

Pierre looked at the clouds and thoughtfully, and said, "Then I guess you'd better go.".

His unusual response shocked Mikan that she sat up straight, and said, "What?".

"Well, what you've been saying doesn't sound like the real you, so I reckon, you'd probably leave the school in your current state. Only the real Mikan would stay where she is, and work things out instead of running away.", he said effortlessly.

"But..it's not that easy...I mean, what am I supposed to do?", Mikan asked.

Pierre sat up straight, and said, smiling, "Just be yourself.".

* * *

Mikan was walking back to her classroom alone, as Pierre went back to his own classroom.

"Just be yourself."

Pierre certainly had a way with words, Mikan thought, happy that she had him as a friend.

"Where have you been, idiot?", a familiar voice spooked her from behind.

"Natsume?! What are you doing here?", Mikan asked, irritated by his presence.

Natsume didn't answer her, and just walked silently at her side.

When they finally reached the classroom, he muttered just loud enough for her to hear, "Don't underestimate your trust in others.", before walking into the classroom and finding his seat.

'Natsume?', Mikan pondered at his sudden peculiar behavior.

"What are you doing back here??", Sumire was first to announce her arrival, but Mikan ignored her.

"Mikan! I'm so glad you didn't really leave!", Iinchou said, running to her side. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay.", Mikan said, cheerfully.

"Hey! Are you listening to me? You should leave this school!", Sumire said, annoyed that she was being ignored. "You don't have an alice. You're just bothering us all!".

"Never.", Mikan retorted. "Just because you say I don't have an alice doesn't mean I don't have one. Besides, it's what Narumi-sensei said. I'd choose his word over yours any day, idiot!".

Sumire was taken aback, but Mikan wasn't finished, "But even so, I don't believe that people with alices are on a higher level than others...though I don't really see how people like YOU could possibly be higher than anyone else...

...with that rotten nature of yours, dumbass!!"

"Just because you can use some great alice doesn't mean you can't work your hardest and give everything you've got towards living! Go get that stupid brain of yours replaced!!Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!", Mikan scolded her, pointing her index finger at the dumbstruck girl to emphasize the word 'Stupid'.

Natsume smirked from afar. "She's back.".

"Y-You...You just don't know when to stop, do you?!", Sumire said, angry to the point that she decided to attack her.

She leapt into the air, and was about to land a big scratch on her with her sharp claws, when out of nowhere, she was hit to the side of the classroom with the help of a horse's hoof...?

"Don't go meddling in other people's business, Shouda-san, because the only person who can make this dummy cry is me.", Hotaru said, wearing a sort of gauntlet that's designed to look like a horse's leg.

"H-Hotaru..", Mikan looked at her best friend.

"So much for the Honor Student Award...it's all your fault.", Hotaru said, without turning to face her. "Even after I endured so much when I really didn't want to.."

With that said, Hotaru walked out of the classroom.

"Hotaru! Where are you going?", Mikan attempted to follow her, but was stopped when Hotaru announced to the whole class that she was going to the library, saying, "Before she starts bawling, I'm going to go do some self-studying...It's too noisy in here...".

'Hotaru..She really does still care for me!", Mikan thought gleefully.

* * *

References to Paramore in the whole story so far.

1. The Story title "Pressured" - The song "Pressure", from their album "All We Know Is Falling"

2. Chapter 3 title "Let the flames begin" - The song "Let the flames begin", from their album "Riot!"

3. Chapter 5 title "Explain to me this conspiracy" - Lyrics from the song "Conspiracy", from their album "All We Know Is Falling"

4. Chapter 6 title "Something to sing about" - Lyrics from the song "Crushcrushcrush", from their album "Riot!"

Maybe I should make more indirect references...hmmm...

Don't forget to RxR! :D


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